Ex-United pilots weigh future without pension

[skykid]

yaks, I don't see anybody pointing fingers. The ESOP was over a 35 year career a pretty small chapter. I don't think you have to remind me of the ESOP. Just to state a fact, the amount I have put into the B fund (or more accurately, the amount the company has put in) since the ESOP is a significant sum, and that is only a few years. The beauty of the B fund is, the fluctuations you mention can be controlled by you. For example, if you have all of your B fund or whatever your retirement savings is - in the stock market right now, I'm not going to feel sorry for you when there is another terrorist attack and the market loses 25%.

 

[CRJ Driver]

Oh no, gota drive a 5 year old car.........LOL

 

[WhiteCloud]

Oh no, gota drive a 5 year old car.........LOL

Great point. I guess living in an ordinary house with a few older ordinary cars and maybe an ordinary Cessna 172 or a ordinary Jon Boat is a little beneath some folks.

 

[enigma]

Men, we all (at least most all) aspired to buying the third airplane/boat,wife, etc. Those guys got there and something that they earned is now being taken away. Go easy on em.

Maybe they could have planned better, or been less naive about the stability of thier pension plan, but the bottom line here is that it is being stolen from them. I truly hope that it never happens to any of you, and hope that you can be just a bit more sympathic to those guys.

enigma

 

[Huck]

The best advice I ever got was to focus on what you spend, not what you earn.

I highly recommend the books and radio show of Dave Ramsey (http://daveramsey.com).

My wife and I have been following his plan for about 3 years. Gone from ~230k in debt to ~100k, with big chunks going away every month.

Live like your parents did. It won't kill you.

I also recommend a book called, "The Overspent American."

 

[skykid]

enigma,


I think if you'll read through this thread you'll see nobody is pointing fingers or being too hard on these retirees, and they do have my sympathy. Besides pointing out the obvious that you have to take care of your own retirement, I would like to point out its in my opinion a little distasteful to let yourself be interviewed about this. Here's my name in the article explaining how my pension is going from 100K to 30K, and the next page is news of the war casualties. If the public has any sympathy left over after reading about the soldiers killed today, maybe we can take a moment for somebody selling their vacation home or holding off on a new car. These articles don't increase sympathy for the retirees, they have the opposite effect, and there is nothing wrong with pointing that out.

It would be more compelling to interview one of the Eastern or Pan Am guys who only got 10 years towards retirement at UAL, than a 30+ year guy. My guess is none of those guys would talk to a reporter - they're too busy laughing about it and enjoying life.

 

[Big Beer Belly]

In spite of all that, I max out my IRA, my childrens' education IRAs and my 401k.

Deleted

 

[canyonblue]

UAL Retired Pilots Emergency - How You Can Help

Amidst the worst catastrophe in recent history, people all over the world are opening up their hearts with an outpouring of support and generosity and asking how they can help. Here are some ways you can help retired UAL pilots and families affected by the possible pension loss.

Donate to our relief and reconstruction efforts. The initial response from the public has been overwhelming for our emergency relief efforts, but long term health, psychosocial and child protection programs will require much more funding. Click here to donate on-line to the
Retired UAL pilots Relief Fund

To send a check, make it out to Save the Pilots, and in the memo section indicate Wheresmyretirement/Pension Relief Fund. Mail the check to: Save the Pilots, 54 Tilton Road , Eastport , CT 06880 .

Make your gift go farther. Find out if your company has a matching gift program http://www.matchinggifts.com/savethepilots/.

Donate stock. Donating appreciated securities, such as stock or mutual funds, to Save the Pilots is a tax-wise approach for providing for children in need.

Urge Congress to protect Retired pilots in emergencies. In humanitarian emergencies such as the UAL Pension disaster, Congress must ensure that vulnerable Pilots are protected from exploitation.

Have your company send an email. Many companies have created their own emails asking employees to support our relief efforts. Include a link to our website www.savethepilots.org

Link to our site. If you have a website, you can download banners and promote our relief efforts. Read our policy and access Pilot crisis banners at the end of the page.

Request a school kit. Save the Pilots has developed materials for use in classrooms to provide teachers with the means to help their students understand and cope with the disaster.

Help your kids cope. Concerned about the emotional well-being of their children, many parents, teachers, grandparents and mentors are looking for advice on how to respond to questions from children about unsettling and upsetting events taking place with the retired UAL pilots. Read our Ten tip to help kids cope with diaster.

Share your thoughts and enlist support. We strongly encourage you to share your own thoughts and experiences with people you know along with the link to our web site www.savethepilots.org. This has proven to be a very effective way of building support.

 

[skykid]

yaks and enigma,

I take it back, you can now see a perfect example of arrogance/ignorance on this thread.

 

[TAZ MAN]

yaks and enigma,

I take it back, you can now see a perfect example of arrogance/ignorance on this thread.

I second that.